Blissful, nourished & free

The holiday season is upon us!

Thanksgiving marked the beginning of my favorite time of year. I love the summertime because I LOVE the heat, but the fall and winter brings two of my favorite holidays: Thanksgiving + Christmas. We decorate the apartment, make coquito or egg nog (check out my vegan coquito recipe here), we make snowflakes and have people over regularly. I practically spend most of my time in the kitchen or cuddled on the couch with Matt listening to our own Christmas playlist (yup, we made our own playlist this year. No commercials. Just straight up seasonal awesomeness).

We hosted for Thanksgiving again this year and a few of our friends actually said they were trying to be vegetarian (like me ;)) so I wanted to present a stunner for the veggie main. Acorn squash are perfect for stuffing and have a nutty slightly sweet taste once roasted.

You can prepare all of this in advance (the quinoa/grain mixture can be prepped a day or two beforehand and stored in the fridge) and just pop in the oven when you’re ready to serve. Now, that’s what I call good hosting!

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I’m in denial that summer came and went. As I’m writing this it’s currently 40 something degrees and I’m wondering if I should have worn gloves or my bubble coat. Not that I have anything against fall, it’s one of my favorite seasons. I say this as I sip this delightfully comforting pumpkin spice chai with almond milk. It’s official. The season of hot beverages is upon us.

Im not going to lie.

This weather is so confusing. One minute it’s 80 and the next it’s 40 and we’re all messed up. But the best part, the weather gives us the best of both worlds: summer and fall produce. Apples AND tomatoes. Fall squash AND summer squash. Sweet potatoes and peppers. In some places there is still corn. That’s pretty awesome. I’m hoarding tomatoes like a mad woman because they’re pretty delicious and we won’t have really good fresh juicy tomatoes until next summer.

But this recipe just takes tomatoes to the next level. Roasting them enhances their deep tomato-y ness, creating a rich flavor and making them extra juicy. You can store these babies once roasted in the freezer or in a jar with some olive oil. But you’ll probably not be able to keep your hands off of them. Let’s be real, I ate half of the tomatoes I roasted before they made it to our dinner plates. Oops.

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Summer is made for salads…at least for the two of us. With the fluctuating and confusing weather going from hot to crazy hot to randomly Fall like, we’ve kept it simple. Basically, less cooked foods besides the occasional roasted veg that happens on those below 70 degree days. I mean, I’m going to have my roasted sweet potato because that crunchiness is not replicated on the stovetop. It’s not the same!!!

To get creative and eat outside the box, salads have become entire meals loaded with everything you could possibly need. Protein, check. Healthy fats, check. Crunchy things, check. Greens, check. Delicious dressing, check check and check. Basically any REAAAAALLLY good salad needs at least something crunchy, creamy, salty, sweet and it needs a really freakin good dressing. It’s a must!

Hubby and I really love that miso ginger dressing that coats every crevice of lettuce at a sushi spot or Hibachi grill. Besides the actually hibachi veggies, the starter salad is WHERE IT’S AT!

If you don’t feel like making your dressing (it’s okay, this is normal human-ness, sometimes I’m lazy af too), there is a creamy miso ginger dressing over by the sushi section at Whole Foods (it’s so damn good). It’s going to run you about 5-6 bucks but it’s worth it if you’re feeling lazy. Or you can give that Newman’s branded sesame ginger dressing a shot. Easy to find. Easy on that budget too 😉

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Summer is in full swing the moment you start to see peaches. Last year we suffered a bit over here in NYC. There were some Jersey peaches but New York State did not get blessed with the juiciness of peaches. It almost felt like it wasn’t quite summer but I didn’t really notice, I was in the midst of wedding planning. This summer I’m giddy and just full blown ecstatic about the arrival of peaches, plums and nectarines. And my friends, they are juicy and ready for your salads and salsas.

I haven’t really gotten creative in the kitchen lately. I’ve been fine with making similar things over and over – if it can be made into a taco I’m going to have it (Siete foods has an amazing Almond Flour tortilla, gluten free AND vegan). But the emergence of peaches inspires me to experiment a bit I’m trying to push the envelope with food combos.

Peach and corn are an awesome combo, same with peach and blueberry, peach and tomato even, but I really haven’t gone beyond until this amazing salad.

I kid you not my husband Matt practically inhaled this salad- I even got the happy grumble in between each bite (if that’s what we’re calling it). I’d call that WINNING!

This salad has everything the farmers market has to offer in the summer: heirloom tomatoes, blueberries, micro greens, fresh peaches, cucumbers, fresh sheeps milk feta. I, of course, add in a few extra things to make it a filling, nourishing salad.

So, what are you waiting for? Get off your butt, go to the farmers market and eat this salad for days and feel awesome!

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An upgrade to your favorite nut butter cup jam packed with superfoods to make you feel extra sexy and indulgent with every bite.

Happy Summer friends! I’m probably alone in my love for the heat, but I really do love the summer. Give me the 100 degree day with a slight breeze, even if it’s humid, I’m cool as a cucumber. I know, I’m a weirdo. I also really thrive on the awesome produce in season right now. Blueberries, black raspberries, cucumbers, cherries, snap peas, broccoli, (want to know more click here) I can go on and on. It’s so freakin’ awesome that nature brings all this deliciousness forth and miraculously cools us down. Yup, everything that comes into season has a purpose. Winter has heartier veggies and fruits that warm us up while summer has lighter, refreshing veggies and fruits to cool us down and flush the system from the winter sludge. Hello to feeling sexy in the summer and glowing in and out.

Now, I’m a fan of sucking down smoothies and eating cooling salads but I’m really not big on doing too much with dessert (I’ll do a yogified “ice cream” on here soon) especially when it’s hot. But my weird self decided making nut butter cups on a hot a** day was a brilliant idea. I mean, I keep them in the fridge so they’re nice and cold with a little chew action going on.

I mean, come on, what’s not to love?! I made these babies a little more interesting by turning the insides green! Yes! I added matcha to the coconut butter that just gave it a slight earthiness that my husband didn’t even notice. I think he actually ate way more than I did! I def snuck in some collagen, MCT oil and chaga mushroom to the melted chocolate to enhance the benefits of this good for you dessert (or ahem treat).

These superpowered cups are:

finger licking good (sorry KFC)

a natural aphrodisiac (thank you to the raw cacao)

loaded with healthy fats (helloooo MCT oil and coconut butter)

great for your hair, skin, nails and gut health (thanks to the collagen)